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6 tech-savvy upgrades to give your kitchen 5-stars

Award-winning designer Tania Kloester shares tech additions worth making to your kitchen before putting your home on the market.

As the heart of the home, it’s no surprise people want their kitchens to inspire and entertain.

Whether you want to increase bench space or give your area a more social feel, a kitchen renovation can help you stand out to potential homebuyers.

Winner of the Housing Industry Australia (HIA) 2020 award for Speciality Areas, kitchen designer Tania Kloester shares six of her favourite tech-savvy upgrades to leave everyone wanting to cook in your kitchen.

Quench the entertainer’s thirst with a wine fridge

With kitchens being the main entertaining space in a home – and the golden rule of entertaining to ensure everyone has a drink – an integrated wine fridge is essential in a premium property.

Kloester says these temperature-controlled fridges allow for a more localised entertaining experience.

“Wine fridges are beneficial so you don’t have to move away from the entertaining space if you’re hosting a dinner party,” Tania says.

“Being able to serve drinks all within the one space keeps it really social and convenient.”

Wine fridges are best when built into a kitchen island and you can position them so guests can help themselves.

 

Declutter with a concealed appliance nook

Although butler’s pantries are still a kitchen rage, Tania says appliance nooks are still a good alternative in homes that don’t have room for larger purpose-built areas.

“Appliance nooks are popular and have been for a long time,” Tania says.

“We’re seeing more of a minimalist approach to their design, where appliances are concealed and kept out of sight.

“This can be just benchtop storage which has a concealed cupboard over it, or it can be something more complex.”

If you’re looking for a more bespoke approach to these concealed spaces, you can install an automated roller door to cover any appliances.

Install a smart oven to satisfy the modern cook

Since the world’s first smart oven came in hot onto the scene in 2016, smart ovens are now essential in the premium market.

Kloester says these WiFi-connected ovens are perfect for catching the eye of people who don’t have the time to wait at home to control their oven.

“Oven technology has improved significantly and now I’m seeing many people install smart ovens which can be controlled with apps,” Tania says.

“These ovens can be programmed away from home and can be set to cook and have your food ready for you once you get home.”

Add luxury with a warming drawer

In addition to smart ovens, Tania says warming drawers as an oven extension attract anyone who wants to have a 5-star dining experience at home.

“You can use the draws to pre-warm coffee cups, plates and keep meals warm which adds a bit of luxury,” Tania says.

For those considering design, Tania says you can add warming drawers alongside multiple ovens to create symmetry.

“You might get a block of four to two standard ovens which might be a combination of normal ovens, steamers, microwaves, wine fridges and then the warming drawers,” Tania says.

“You can get a nice looking visually balanced block of appliances.”

Enhance minimalism with an all-in-one tap

Although these taps used to dispense chilled and boiling water, all-in-one taps that also provide sparkling and filtered water are perfect for anyone wanting to tap into minimalist style while impressing homebuyers.

Tania says these taps are becoming more popular as they allow people to forgo the kettle and refrigerated water jugs.

“You’ve got instant boiling, sparking, chilled, filtered all within one tap to get a really minimalist look,” Tania says.

“All-in-one taps give you convenience unlike anything else.”

Multiple cooktops to satisfy the home chef

Regardless of whether you’re hoping to attract Gordon Ramsey into your kitchen, multiple cooktops ensure you’re catering for everyone.

Tania says although induction cooktops are figuratively the hottest type, varying your cooktops is a popular approach.

“People who really love to cook might opt for induction for their main cooking style but then still bring in a gas wok burner for their Asian dishes,” Tania says.

You can also feature multiple cooktops on different bench spaces — something Tania says adds to a kitchen’s entertainment factor.

“One thing I’m seeing is added cooktops being built into islands,” Tania says.

“This comes down to us becoming more social, hosts can potentially be cooking and entertaining at the same time while facing the living areas, which is really nice.”

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